Five Factors You Should Know About Hospice Care

If you’re considering hospice care for yourself or a loved one, you will benefit from learning about the basics of hospice care. Hospice care is a specialty form of medical care that focuses on caring for the terminally ill patient, usually in the patient’s own home. There are aspects of hospice care that are often misunderstood, and for this reason clearing them up before you make a decision can help a family member make the best care decisions for a loved one in this situation.

Hospice Care Can Be Delivered at Home

With hospice care, terminally ill patients can be cared for at home, with their loved ones nearby. Hospice care professionals often make regular visits to make sure that the care is going well in the home, and to assess and monitor the patient for symptoms or for pain care management.

Hospice May Help Others Besides the Patient

Hospice care is designed to be delivered not only to the patient, but to the entire family or significant others helping to care for the patient in the home. Sometimes, the symptoms that occur with terminal illness are too difficult for a family to witness without support, and hospice care professionals are trained to provide that support on a regular basis. The hospice care professionals are also able to answer questions that the family members may have, and offer support as they help the patient through the end of days.

You May Opt Out of Hospice Care at Any Time

Occasionally, patients who have been told they are terminally ill end up living for many years. Such a patient who enrolls in hospice care need not worry, because it is possible to opt out of hospice care at any time, and to continue with non-hospice care options available in the home care program.

Hospice Care May Extend Your Life

It is a known fact that sometimes those who enroll in hospice end up living longer than others with the same diagnosis who were not enrolled. While the reasons for this are unknown, they may be related to the improvement in life quality that hospice care is often able to deliver, and the relative peace of mind that the patient and family members often experience as a result of using hospice care options.

The Goal of Hospice Is Not Merely Patient Sedation

While many associate hospice care with the giving of strong pain-relieving drugs to terminally ill patients, these drugs are not always used simply as a means of sedation. Hospice care is focused upon improving the overall quality of life of a terminally ill patient, not just on sedation. When the patient is able to interact with the family members pain free, it is a win-win scenario for all family members. Remember, pain management is ordered by the patient’s physician, and those orders are reviewed on a case by case basis depending on the needs of the patient.

Learn More About Hospice Care Today

If you’re interested in learning more about what it means to be on hospice care, contact Ameriprime Hospice today by calling 1-800-899-9790.